The Mentalist: 5570 West Huron
by Alasse Fefalas
Summary: Tag for 6.01 and 6.02. How Patrick Jane finds Lisbon. (One-shot)


**5570 West Huron**

By Alasse Fefalas

His eyes were just staring into space, seeing but not really. His ears hearing the static in the phone but not listening. His breath caught in his lungs; Words stuck in his throat.

"Wait," he repeated weakly into the phone, long after the call had disconnected. He knew there was nothing else to say, Red John had long dropped the call. He knew.

Just like how he knew Lisbon was in danger because of him. Because he had told her the seven people on the list. Because he made her so frustrated with him she would go off on her own.

Slowly, Jane took his phone off his ear and closed it. Taking a deep breath to compose himself, he mentally counted to ten. He had to clear his mind. He had to find Lisbon.

Pocketing his phone, Jane entered Lisbon's empty office. He gave a cursory glance at the room, documenting every item in it as quick as he could. Walking around Lisbon's desk, he stood and surveyed the items on her table. A piece of paper weighed down by her keyboard caught his interest. Bending low, Jane read off the paper, "5570 West Huron."

Jane took one more look around the office and took off, having memorized the address Lisbon had written. It was worth a try, he thought.

-x-x-x-

The road outside the residence was empty save for Lisbon's car. Parking behind it, Jane got out of his car. He checked the car for the owner, but there was no one inside. The house loomed before him, and without a doubt in his mind did he know Lisbon was sure to be in there. Whether she was fine or not, he didn't want to wonder. Looking around the quiet street, he clasped his hands together and walked up the short flight of stairs.

The door was ajar. Jane craned his neck in past the threshold of the door, listening to any signs of activity. An eerie silence greeted him. Taking a step into the house, Jane spotted a switch near the door. He flicked it up and waited for a moment. Still darkness. Someone had probably cut the power, he thought.

Jane reached for his phone and turned on the flash as a makeshift light. The writings on the walls made his eyebrows furrow together. Whoever lived in the house must have had a fascination with the occult.

"Lisbon?" Jane called into the darkness beyond. Silence answered him. Even though his entire mind screamed for him not to, Jane ventured deeper into the house, checking the rooms for any signs of his partner. He stopped at one of the rooms and stared at the occupants. The birds cooed and picked at the items on the floor. It was weird that there were birds in the house. Jane nibbled lightly on his inner lip as he absently twisted the ring on his finger, storing the presence of the animals in his memory palace.

The distant sound of police sirens reminded of the task at hand: finding Lisbon. Looking away, Jane continued through the house. He was slightly distracted by the sound of the sirens though. They were getting louder. He must be in the right place then, if Lisbon had called for back up from Sac PD. Ignoring the sounds, Jane pushed open a door.

Loud noises came from the front of the house as the Sac PD units came in, announcing their arrival by screaming "Sac PD!"

Jane had tuned out any sounds outside the room though. All that mattered to him was there, right in front of him. His breaths came in short and sharp as trepidation filled him. Walking over to the lone bed, his eyes were transfixed on the body laying on the furniture. Stretching his hand, he touched her face. It was still warm. The blood on her face though, was cold and dry. The rise and fall of her chest assured him she was still alive, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from her face.

Red John had painted a smiley on Lisbon's face.

"SAC PD! PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!" A voice suddenly shouted from the doorway behind Jane.

Jane didn't move; He couldn't move.

"Sir, step away from Agent Lisbon," an officer said.

Finally, Jane turned to face the young man who had a gun trained on him. "Please stop pointing that gun at me. I'm her partner. She needs medical attention."

The officer stared at him for a moment, unsure what to do. Just then, an older officer came into the room. "Sir? This man claims to be Agent Lisbon's partner. She didn't tell us she had someone with her," the younger officer said, his gun still pointing at Jane, who simply rolled his eyes.

The older officer raised his eyebrow and put a hand on the younger man's shoulder. "As much as I would like to get him shot, Patrick Jane is a consultant of the CBI. Put down your gun."

The younger man hesitantly lowered his weapon and holstered it. Nodding at his superior, he walked out of the room.

"Thank you," Jane said sarcastically. "Sergeant, Lisbon needs an ambulance."

The sargeant side eyed him before speaking into the radio on his shoulder. "This is Sergeant Ren. Requesting immediate medical assistance for two at 5570 West Huron."

"Two?" Jane asked.

Sergeant Ren didn't reply. He simply walked to the other side of the bed and knelt down. Curious, Jane followed. The Sergeant's hand was at Brett Partridge's neck, searching for a pulse.

"Brett Partridge, huh. Red John wouldn't have left him alive," Jane said.

The Sergeant glared at Jane. "Did you kill him?"

"How could I? I didn't even know he was there." Jane said in exasperation.

"What happened to Agent Lisbon?"

"I don't know. I found her like this, just moment before you guys came barging in here."

The Sergeant walked up to Jane, entering his personal space. "Why should I trust you? You got one of my men killed."

"Because trust me when I say this, Sergeant. I will never, ever, hurt Lisbon," Jane answered, his voice hard as steel.

The younger officer from before stepped into the room. "Uhm Sir? The paramedics are here."

"Bring them in," Jane said as he side stepped away from the Sergeant.

The younger officer nodded and ran out, returning only moments later with men pushing gurneys.

"Agent Lisbon needs medical care," Jane said, gesturing towards Lisbon on the bed. "Brett Partridge is dead."

The medical team nodded and got to work, checking Lisbon for any wounds before transferring her from the bed to the gurney. As they wheeled her out of the room, Jane turned towards the Sergeant, "I need water. Do you have water?"

"What? No."

"Never mind then," Jane said, walking out of the room. Following behind the paramedics, Jane asked the officers in the house, "Does anyone have water?" There were several "no"s and shakes of head. Nodding, Jane ran to the front of the house. He had to get water. He refused to let Red John take hold of Lisbon any longer than needed. He needed to wipe that smiley off her face. Following the gurney, Jane walked out of the house.

"Jane, how is she?" Bertram, who was outside the house, asked.

"I don't know. You got any water on you?" Jane asked, walking towards Bertram. He didn't care why Bertram was there. He just needed a damn bottle of water.

"What?"

"I need some water. Anybody have any water on you? A bottle of water? Anybody!"

"Over here!" An officer called out, throwing a bottle of water at Jane.

Catching it, Jane murmered a quick thank you and uncapped it, pourginf it onto a wad of tissues. "Wait, wait, wait," Jane called out to the paramedic and climbed on board the ambulance. Sitting down beside her, Jane gently wiped the blood off her face.

"Sir? We have to go to the hospital," the paramedic said.

"I'm coming along." Jane continued wiping Lisbon's face, making sure he had gotten all of it off her.

The paramedic nodded and climbed into the ambulance, closing the door behind him.

A/N: So I (finally) wrote my version of how Jane found Lisbon. I hoped you liked it! If you didn't, well... I'm sorry about that. This was how I imagined it. Anyway, thanks for reading! Reviews are much appreciated!


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